Chris met my eyes. “What? Did you feel something from the heart?”
I nodded. “A warning. Did you feel it too?” When he nodded, I stood up. “We should go to Ether.”
“Why do you always assume that if something is wrong, it is happening in Ether?” Dai asked.
“Because there’s nothing to happen in the Lost City,” I replied.
“Actually, it could be in the Lost City,” Chris said. “When I went there to get Kai, there was a girl. There are still people in the Lost City. They’re just hiding. Could something have happened to them?”
“Maybe,” Tao said. He reached over beside his bed. He pulled out his sword and slid it into the sheathe he wore at his waist. “Let’s go.”
I unraveled my arms from around Chris’ neck when his feet touched the ground. I resisted the urge to kiss the dirt. Almost a year and a half of flying around, and I still wasn’t used to it.
Tao and the others appeared moments later. I stared at them. How do they get here so quickly? I looked around. “Is it just me, or did that take less time than it has before?”
Dai shrugged. “Should we start looking around?”
Chris turned towards the dark shadows of the Lost City. Light never seemed to touch this place like it did in Ether. He looked around; it was almost like he wanted to find someone.
“Hey, guys,” Min said slowly. “You might want to come over here.”
Chris moved until he was standing behind Min. His eyes widened. Laurel was hiding in a cramped, dark vent in the building. Blood trickled down her face from a cut somewhere on her head. She was pale, skinny, and absolutely terrified.
“G-g-get away from me!” She shrieked, scrambling back farther into the vent.
“Laurel,” Chris said gently. “Laurel, look at me. Do you recognize me?”
“You’re not an angel,” she whispered furiously, tears filling her eyes. “You weren’t here to protect us.”
“Is your name Laurel?” I asked. I held out my hand. “Please come out. We won’t hurt you.”
“NO!” She screamed, recoiling as if my hand were on fire. “You’re the one he wants! The bad man was here for you!”
“The bad man?” I echoed.
Chris looked just as confused. “Kai is gone,” he commented. “What bad man?”
Laurel’s eyes rolled back, and she sank to the bottom of the vent. She had passed out. I reached in and gently pulled her out. I sat down and arranged her in my lap.
Lae reached out to her. “She’s lost quite a bit of blood.” His hand shimmered slightly. The cut on her head began to close and heal. “Something traumatic must have happened for her to be so scared of us.”
“Do you know her?” Dai asked Chris.
Chris nodded. “She was scared of Kai, but not of me. She thought I was an angel.”
I handed her to Lae. “You, Luke, and Min stay here. Tao, Chris, and I will look around and see if anyone else is here.” Lae nodded and turned to Laurel, focused on the healing.
Tao and Chris followed me deeper into the Lost City. I shoved empty trash cans and bits of debris out of the way. Chris laid his hand on my shoulder. “I’m going to scout out from above.”
I nodded. “If you see anything…”
“I’ll point it out,” he finished. He soared into the sky with an almost explosive noise.
